Trends of Utilizing Telepractice in Adult Training and Coaching for Children with Autism: A Umbrella Review

Purpose

We explored the trends of telepractice interventions study that focused on supporting adults who ultimately support children with developmental disabilities.

Methods

We reviewed telepractice single-case intervention studies published in peer-reviewed journals in the past 10 years. We specifically focused on components of training and coaching adults who support children with developmental disabilities. We first reviewed the general characteristics of each experimental study, including the design rigor. Then we looked deeply into the format and structure of training and coaching and the characteristics of those approaches based on the adult learning theory (Trivette et al., Research Brief, 3(1), 1–33, 2009). Finally, we synthesized the reviewed information to explore the trends of supporting adults through telepractice.

Results

The results of this review aligned with the common understanding of training and coaching characteristics: instruction, practice, and feedback. However, the literature shows limited recommended components in both training and coaching.

Conclusion

The current review enhanced the telepractice literature for supporting adult learners with the gap that can be explored by future research. We believe the review also helps build a telepractice program structure for professionals planning to support adults who currently or will eventually work with children with developmental disabilities.